The Aviva Premiership salary cap will rise to £5m from the start of next season.

The new measures will see the basic cap rise from £4.26m up to £4.76m with clubs permitted to nominate one 'marquee player' outside of this allowance whose wage is not included within those restraints.

The clubs are also permitted to spend £240,000 worth of academy credits outside of the cap - these are divided into eight chunks of £30,000 which can be spent on players who have come through the club's academy system - with an extra £400,000 permitted to be spent on injury replacements.

The news comes a week after the French clubs announced a new bumper broadcasting deal to show the Top 14 games and amid reported fears that those teams over the Channel may start to tempt a few of England's premier talents to the top flight in France, Premiership Rugby is adamant England's top flight is still "the most competitive league in world rugby".

"The Premiership Rugby clubs have approved this increase following the financial boost given by the new contract with BT Sport and the renewal of the competition's title sponsorship, with Aviva," Premiership Rugby CEO Mark McCafferty said. "This reflects the policy agreed by the clubs in 2011 to align the salary cap to the financial distributions Premiership Rugby makes to the clubs."

"The objective of the salary cap is to control inflationary pressures on clubs' costs, and to provide a level playing field for clubs to ensure a competitive Aviva Premiership rugby competition. These objectives are borne out in the financial success the league is now seeing with more clubs breaking even, and a healthy turnover of teams at the top of the league with three different winners in as many years."

Clubs will also now be subject to "a new, more transparent, salary cap monitoring and investigation system."